Governor says Rostec might build drone centre in Murmansk

During a recent visit to Moscow, Governor Andrei Chibis met with Rostec CEO Sergei Chemezov to discuss industrial cooperation.

Among the projects on the table is the development of a drone centre, Chibis reported on his social media page.

"We plan to set up a site for the production of prototype components and for testing unmanned systems for use at sea, in the air, and on land," he said. "We are considering a plot of almost 2 hectares with access to the waters of the Kola Bay, covering an area of more than 60 hectares," he added.

Rostec is reportedly also interested in establishing a local research and production centre in the Arctic region.

Rostec is a Moscow-based state defence conglomerate comprising several hundred enterprises, most of which are involved in weapons production and development.

According to Rostec, company representatives attended a strategic session on maritime drone systems in Murmansk in August 2026.

Rostec is already developing unmanned boats, telecommunications systems, control systems, and deep-sea cameras capable of operating at depths of up to 12,000 metres, the state corporation reports.

"Together, we are working on promising technologies, including in the fields of the Arctic, navigation, new materials, robotics, and artificial intelligence. It is precisely this triad—‘industry, science and the state’—that enables us to turn ideas into prototypes more quickly, and prototypes into mass-produced products," Chemezov noted in connection with the event in Murmansk.

On a number of occasions, technology presented as innovation by Rostec has been proven to be replica of Chinese equipment.

Rostec is playing a key role in Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. The company, as well as Sergei Chemezov himself, is on the sanctions lists of the EU, the USA, and many other countries.